And Then There Were Four
by goldnheart
Summary: The Shitennou have finally all arrived in modern day Tokyo, allowed to make amends. They find forgiveness is in short supply and, apparently, other men are not.
1. Tiny Tyrant

Don't own Sailor Moon. Also, this thing is going to need a beta if anyone is interested.

* * *

"This isn't working anymore."

"Usagi?" Ami asked, startled by her tone.

"This whole divisions thing. All of it . It is not working."

Ami had a feeling she knew what Usagi meant.

Looking at the other girls, she had a feeling they did too. Their silence confirmed it.

"I'm serious. This has to stop." Usagi was fixing them all with her intense blue gaze, her expression determined. "I can't live like this. There are only a dozen or so people in this universe who I can talk to about who I am. Who I really am, about who I was, and about who I will be. I need everyone to bear this weight. It gets so heavy sometimes." Her voice broke slightly on heavy.

Makoto reached across the table for her hand. Usagi smiled at her but it was just a flicker.

"It can't always be senshi, shitennou, inners, outers, his guard, my guard. We have to stop acting like we all have different goals. That may have been true way back, but it can't be now." He voice was definitely exasperated now. "We are allies. We all have to build this new world."

Usagi closed her eyes and took a deep breath and let it out.

"I know they did something terrible." She opened her eyes, and they were completely compassionate. "I know. I know what that is like. I had Mamoru's blood on my hand, I had to stop him when he was controlled by Beryl. He tried to kill me. I do understand. But you have to forgive. They were puppets, just like Mamoru was. Why do you think he forgave them so quickly? Because he had suffered the same fate. He understood."

No eyes met hers.

"I'm serious. You have to forgive them. You have to work with them. You don't have to love them. I'm not asking you to pick up where you left off. But you have to make peace."

Still nothing. Usagi sighed.

"I hoped I wouldn't have to do this. You are no longer allowed to patrol together, starting now. You must take a shitennou with you on patrols instead. No senshi meetings without them" Usagi paused, "Except girl's nights out. Those we keep."

"That's just because you don't want to skip out on potluck nights." Makoto said softly.

It was quiet for a moment before Minako started to laugh, then Ami, Rei, and finally Usagi. It had a hysterical note, but they were willing to take what they could get.

"I guess we had better go talk to them about this." Minako said finally, standing up. Usagi smiled at her.

"Thank you. They're all with Mamoru at Crown. Really, thank you, I love you all." There were hugs, and a few hand squeezes before Usagi closed the door on her cosy little campus apartment.

The four women stopped outside the lobby, all looking at each other.

"I think we just got guilt tripped." Rei said, looking dazed.

Matoko shoot her head, smiling slightly in amazement,

"Damn she's good."

-

"Baby."

"Hi my love!"

"How did it go?"

"They'll be there."

A low whistle followed, "You're good, baby, too good."

"It was all true, what I told them, but...yeah, yeah, I am."

"Alright, I should go then."

"Love you, tell me how it goes."

"Love you too."

The phone went dead.


	2. Symbolic or Something

I do not own Sailor Moon. This is rough still. It needs a beta badly. :)

* * *

Mamoru looked at the four men who sat anxiously in the corner of an arcade filled with squealing girls.

Kunzite had his arms folded over his chest, looking slightly disgusted at the giggles and glances.

Nephrite and Jadeite smiled back. Zoicite sat sullenly at the far end of the table.

They had pushed together two of the longer tables. Four chairs on each side, one at the juncture between the two. He hung up the phone, walked inside, and took the seat at the head of the table, between his men and where the senshi would be. He supposed it was symbolic or some shit. He was tired of always having to be symbolic. This needed to stop.

He was glad the senshi were not far behind him because he really couldn't think of what to say. Apparently, neither could any of them.

He knew they had arrived when Kunzite stood immediately before the bell on the door jangled. His men all looked rather stunned. Then again, most men did when all four senshi walked in at the same time. After all, they had something for everyone: the blond bombshell, the girl next door, the exotic beauty, the sweet ingenue. Usagi had asked him once if he thought it was a little convenient that his four generals had ended up involved with her four senshi. This was why it hadn't. That and the fact that few men got to be alone with the inner senshi. Otherwise, he didn't doubt the girls would have been involved with other men. And he guessed there might have been that whole fate thing. He wasn't Pluto.

Mamoru just waived, smiling without thinking. He loved them. It was hard not to.

He recognized each girl's defensive mechanism.

Minako's smile was too bright as she waved back, stopping to blow Andrew a kiss who caught it and put it to his heart. (Mamoru did not want to look at Kunzite at that moment. He would have to tell his head general that Andrew was very happily married.)

Rei was absolutely cold and aloof. It was much worse, in his book, than Rei angry. Rei angry meant Rei cared. This, this was usually reserved for her father.

Makoto's whole body was tense. She held herself for a fight, fists at her side. She was the only senshi scanning the eyes of every general.

And his poor Ami, the one of the four he was closest to after endless study session together, she had just shut down. He wondered where she went at times like this.

Minako put herself in front of the other girls. Once the leader, always so, Usagi or no Usagi. She walked straight to him, eyes completely trained on him. She leaned down and hugged him. He may have been irritated with them, but Minako gave great hugs. You don't say no to a Mina hug. And he understood she needed it.

"It's good to see you, Mamoru. I feel like it's been ages."

"You too, Mina. I'm always at the hospital these days."

"It feels weird not to see you everyday."

"I know. But it is temporary. Just until the end of residency. Than the hours will get a bit better if not great. Ami will be in my shoes soon, too."

Ami glanced at him and barely nodded before she shot back down to the floor. He'd tried.

He motioned for them to sit.

"Usagi told me you'd meet us today. I'm glad you're here."

Minako's eyes never wavered from him.

"She gave us some..directions, yes."

"And?"

"Starting tonight, we will no longer be the only ones doing Patrols. Instead, Usagi has asked us to set up a schedule so that we will each do our patrol with one of you instead. We also invite you all to our biweekly meeting."

Mamoru nodded. He wanted badly to tell them it was about damn time but he saw the fragility behind the fronts and he just couldn't allow himself the anger.

"We meet thursdays at 7ish, sundays at 2ish. At the shrine. The 'ish' is for Usagi."

There was murmur of amusement but the tension only reduced by a hair. Mamoru was not disheartened. It would be slow. He could do slow.

"We'll be there." Kunzite said briefly.

Minako nodded. She opened her mouth slightly but paused. Her eyes dropped to the table now too.

"Usagi has asked me-asked us- to forgive you all." She swallowed, her voice was tight. Mamoru saw Makoto put her hand on Mina's knee. "I can't speak for the others on this, but I can't just do that. It would be a lie. But I can promise to try. I really will try. And I will work with you. I will try to make this work."

"Thank you." Kunzite's voice was gruff rather than its usually dark silk. Minako smiled faintly but it shook.

"I will too." Makoto said firmly. Nephrite caught her eye and his expression, with that hesitant smile, made Mamoru wince. It was too raw.

"So will I." Ami said flatly. "If you still need help, Zoicite, creating the necessary records for you four, I will help you."

Zoicite blinked startled. So she had listened to his voicemails, even if she had spoken all of three words to him in the month they'd been back. She had hung up on him many, many more times.

"That would be great. It will be Zadok now, actually. Mamoru picked it out. We're ready to start putting together the documents now."

"Zadok. She tried out the word. "It's nice. It suits you. I can come by Mamoru's tonight if you'd like."

"I'll be there. 7 or 8?"

"7 is fine." He nodded, pulling out his phone.

"This is your number, right? In case something comes up." Zoicite had just not been able to help himself. Ami barely glanced at the phone, lips pursed.

"Yes." Zoicite smiled broadly.

"Good. Good." Mamoru shook his head. This was how it had started before.

The table was quiet. Time stretched on. Still, silence.

"Rei." Minako said, voice a warning.

Rei remained still. She finally looked down up from table at Minako. Something palpable passed between them.

"I will try because Usagi wants me to. But I make no promises. I value loyalty above all else." She looked for a moment as if she'd say much, much more. She closed her eyes and her shield must have held, because she settled back into her chair, barely aware she'd leant forward toward Jadeite with every word.

Mamoru breathed again. He needed to speak with Rei alone. He understood that this life had taught her not to trust. He would help, if he could; neither she nor Jadeite deserved to be so miserable.

"I have patrol tonight. It was supposed to be with Usagi but, well, who wants to join me?" Minako asked at length. She knew. They all knew. But she refused to give him the validation of inviting him.

"I will." Came the predictable reply. Kunzite looked at her calmly, but Mamoru could see the tension. He wondered if it was because Kunzite wanted her to say yes, or because he hoped she'd say no.

"Alright. Midnight. Central Plaza." She stood, not waiting for him to answer. "Meeting tomorrow then. We can set up the rest of the Patrols then. We should be going. Nice seeing you Mamoru." She hesitated. "I'll see all of you tomorrow."

The other three hustled out of their chairs after their already retreating leader, muttering goodbye.

"Well." Mamoru said, leaning back in his chair. "That went better than expected."

"You mean versus the castrating one or all of us?" Jadeite asked, still looking at the door.

"Exactly."


End file.
